


Falling Stars

by Lokisgame



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Birthday Fluff, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-24
Updated: 2018-02-24
Packaged: 2019-03-23 04:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13779930
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lokisgame/pseuds/Lokisgame
Summary: This time, they were just happy to sit down and be two people who went through a lot and survived.





	Falling Stars

They sat at their usual table, a booth in the far corner, away from the crowd at the bar. Sandwiches eaten, beers exchanged for wine and scotch, they enjoyed a comfortable silence, letting the cares wash away. Unlike those first forgotten birthdays, or the one they tried hard to make feel like anything but goodbye. This time, they were just happy to sit down and be two people who went through a lot and survived.  
The waitress brought the cake, rich dark chocolate on a single plate, placing it between them. They smiled at her, and she nodded her thanks. 

Scully moved closer, leaning over the cake, watching it with her arms crossed on the edge of the table. Last time they did it she was dying and it felt like he wanted each minute to feel like four, because they thought she didn't even have dog years to share with him, a bomb ticking behind her smile wrinkled nose, measuring out seconds with breaths, mercilessly growing. But no more. Today they had all the time in the world.  
Mulder produced a single candle from his jacket pocket, stuck it into the cake and lighting it, waited with chin resting on the heel of his palm. Expectant yet casual, excitement a subliminal hum in his smile.  
Taking a playfully deep breath she gently blew out the candle. A thin wisp of smoke rose as Scully looked up to see Mulder's other hand, hidden under the table until now. He placed the gift next to the plate, a small velvet box, black and elegant. 

Last time he joked about alien implants, unaware, that soon it would really be his gift to her, paid with a man's life and almost his and hers careers. His last birthday gift was her life. But this could be anything, from everything to nothing. Scully's heart fluttered, more with excitement than embarrassment, hesitant to reach for the box, prolonging the moment, relishing the anticipation. Mulder, quite excited himself, pushed the box towards her with one finger, sliding it an inch over the table encouragingly. Her eyes went wide as she opened it.  
Nestled side by side, glistening against the velvet dark as the night sky, diamond stud earrings shone like twin falling stars.  
Her silence turned into speechless awe when she looked up to meet his eyes, as soft and the look as powerful as the night she told him, she'll be alright.

A shy smile played around his lips, fully aware that the gift was out of line. He could see that she wanted to say it's too much, too expensive, that she couldn't accept this, but in his twisted logic, it made perfect sense. The hardest substance, brittle but beautiful as it caught even the faintest of lights. Scully was always a diamond, polished and brilliant, hard and full of color, pure and clear, with only the tiniest of flaws. But all of these feelings had to be kept inside, he could only hope she would accept, without question just this once. A tilt of his chin, her nod of thanks. 

It was obvious she wanted to try them on.  
Having removed the ones she wore, white pearls in gold her father gave her when she finished med school, she winked at him and dipped her small desert fork in his scotch. Mulder watched her amused, seeing stranger things happen, but then she picked up the new earrings carefully, anxious not to drop them, and he understood why she did it. Scully swiped one finger over the wet end of the fork and used the alcohol to clean the earring before pushing one, then the other through the tiny hole in each earlobe. Finally, with arms folded over the tabletop, she leaned closer showing him her ears, head tilting to the left, then to the right.  
Mulder leaned in, stoping her mid motion with fingers beneath her chin. Brushing away loose strands and tucking them behind her ear turned into a gentle caress, sending shives up his arm and down her spine as their eyes stayed glued to each other. The path swallowed them, leading him to lean in closer as she met him somewhere over the forgotten cake and before they knew, it was too late to go back. The kiss meant for her cheek brushed the corner of her mouth.  
"Happy birthday" he whispered, pulling back shyly, keeping the glimpse of softness of his lips on hers frozen in time.


End file.
